


I am from the Planet of Elegance

by Donuts4Dragons (TheAlpineSea)



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe- Zoo, Awkwardness, Ben is a Klutz, Crack, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, One Shot, Rey is a Zookeeper, a little bit of zoo politics
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-17
Updated: 2020-01-17
Packaged: 2021-02-26 03:21:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,182
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21616744
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheAlpineSea/pseuds/Donuts4Dragons
Summary: “We have a Code Green. Code Green just West of the Aquarium.”Ben shot up out of his chair and grabbed the cart keys. He practically ran to the door as he pulled up his radio.“This is Solo. What’s the situation?”“………It’s Wendy.”ZooAu! Where Ben, an administrator at Chandrila Zoo, is sent to catch a “rogue animal”. And yet, he finds the most perilous part of the experience is navigating his interactions with one pretty British Zoologist.
Relationships: Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 14
Kudos: 180





	I am from the Planet of Elegance

**Author's Note:**

> I have had an unusually large amount of Zoo-related experience(not by choice). And from all that experience, and a Bio-documentary episode that gave me an odd existential crisis, this story just sort of evolved. However, I am by no means a Zoologist, so I’m not confident in the terminology used in this fic. Also, I’m purposefully ignoring the fact that tusks are probably a huge hazard. Don’t try to take down wild animals without training please. 
> 
> And lastly, this is not intended to have any real plot, just plenty of shenanigans.

“We have a Code Green. Code Green just West of the Aquarium.”

Ben shot up out of his chair and grabbed the cart keys. He practically ran to the door, pulling up his radio.

“This is Solo. What’s the situation?”

He ducked into the golf cart waiting outside, cursing as he accidentally slammed his forehead on the cart ceiling. That happened way too often.

The radio crackled. Then the voice on the other end (Ben was pretty sure the guy’s name was Flynn or something) gave a long sigh, hesitating. 

Ben glared at the radio as if it was the man who owned the voice.

“I repeat, what’s the situation over there?”

“………It’s Wendy.”

Ben froze in the middle of pulling out the keys. Then he gave a heavy sigh as well, simultaneously annoyed and relieved. He hit the steering wheel a couple times in frustration before finally answering, albeit less urgently.

“I’ll be over.”

Thankfully, on the way over, people were NOT running around in a panic, but were instead meandering around the enclosures and blocking the overgrown man in a golf cart. So hopefully nobody had run into Wendy yet.

As he turned the corner of the Aquarium, he saw Rose on her hands and knees by the bushes and Ferris (or whatever-his-name was) standing, radio in one hand, the other covering his face in exasperation. Ben could relate. He parked the cart and jumped out.

“Where is she?” 

They both turned, Whats-His-Bucket resigned, Rose with a hard look on her face. 

“You didn’t need to come out, we’ve got it covered.” Rose said, eyes narrowed. She never did like him.

Ben just arched an eyebrow and repeated, “Where is she?”

Finnick (That sounded closer) gestured to the Aquarium exterior wall. Or rather, to the thick bushes surrounding it.

“In there.”

Ben took a deep breath to calm himself and then asked, “Who let her escape?”

Rose stared him down resolutely, but Farley glanced at her from the corner of his eye.

Ben began, “Miss Tico-“

She cut him off.

“It’s no huge deal. The same thing happens everyday in parks when people walk their dogs. Sometimes animals just get excited and pull at the leash when you least expect it. It’s not like Wendy’s a jaguar or something.” She then turned to give her co-worker an accusing glance. “We didn’t even need to call it in, FINN.”

(Oh, there it is. Finnick definitely was the closest.)

Ben took a step closer to Rose and met her steely glare head on, despite having a good foot of height on her.

“FINN was following protocol by calling it in, it’s not your job to decide what situations you can ditch procedure for." Rose's eyes finally darted away from Ben's unwavering gaze. He continued, "Even if there’s no danger of anyone getting mauled, it would still be detrimental to the Zoo’s image to have animals outside of their enclosures. Which is why I was against this to begin with.” He murmured the last sentence to himself angrily.

She opened her mouth to respond, but Ben cut her off, “We need someone to direct visitor traffic away from the area, I’m sure you can handle THAT.”

Her nostrils flared.

Well, if she didn’t hate him before, she definitely did now. 

But thankfully, she only turned to Finn to say, “You are buying me ice-cream later. The birthday cake kind.”

As she walked away, Finn called after her, “That’s a horrible flavor, but okay!”

Poe’s voice came from the radio at Ben's hip.

“Hey, I’m sending Rey over to help with the Code Green.”

Ben snatched up the radio, “Isn’t it Niima’s day off?”

Finn gave him a mildly interested look at knowing her schedule.

“She happened to be dropping something off about when the call came in. She’ll be over soon.”

Ben shoved the radio back onto his belt. He also shoved that piece of news into the back of his mind. Wendy should be taken care of before she even arrived. Hopefully.

“Where’s her leash?”

“Still attached to her collar.”

“Ok, we are going to flush her out. If you come at her from the right side of the bushes, I’ll be waiting on the other end to catch her.”

Finn’s eyebrows rose skeptically, but Ben just shooed him into position. He was determined to make this work the first time. If all went well, they would have Wendy contained before Poe’s calvary showed up.

Ben stood next to the bushes spreading his legs and arms, making use of his absurdly long limbs for once as he got ready to catch Wendy. Then he nodded at Finn, who started to rustle his way into the bushes. 

Almost immediately, a warthog decorated with wiry hairs dashed out towards Ben, its short legs pumping frantically, leash trailing behind her. 

Ben braced himself and reached for the collar following behind her. As his fingers closed around the thick leather band, he allowed himself a celebratory grin. Which immediately turned into a yelp as Wendy continued to barrel forward, diving straight between his legs. 

He tightened his grip on her collar, but his arm was yanked along with the warthog. Which pulled his entire torso suddenly into his legs. And then threw him onto his back. 

He hit his head painfully against the pavement (His head was really taking a beating today.) and his breath was totally knocked out of his chest. And he lost his grip on Wendy’s collar.

He lay there trying to catch his breath only to let out a holler as one of Wendy’s hoofs dug into his side. Finn rushed over to his aid from the bushes, but the warthog disappeared into the foliage again before he arrived.

“Are you alright, Mr. Solo? That was quite a flip.”

He wheezed, taking his time to reply.

“Let’s just finish this already.”

Finn offered a hand to help pull him up. As he tugged Ben to his feet, Ben could feel his back ache already.

“Going for her body or collar would probably end badly, so let’s aim for the leash." Ben instructed, "I’ll flush her out towards you this time.”

Finn nodded, looking a little bit more nervous after seeing Ben slammed into the ground. They got into position, Finn now leaving a little bit of space between him and the bushes, in an attempt to direct her path rather than block it. Ben waited for his thumbs-up before beginning to crash his way (The landscapers would probably be having serious words with him later about their wrecked bushes.) towards the barely noticeable figure of Wendy within the leaves.

Within seconds, Wendy was shooting out of the bushes again, little eyes rolling. Ben felt a rush of relief as he saw the warthog heading dead-on for that vacant space left by Finn. And the other man reached out for the leash as soon as she started to pass him.

But Finn was jerked by the warthog-powered leash so hard, that he went flying sideways, landing on his side on the pavement with an audible slapping sound. 

Ben winced in sympathy, thinking how painful the concrete had felt when he was flipped onto his back earlier. Then, as Wendy continued to power her way forward, Finn, in agony but still gripping the leash, slowly but surely, was dragged along with her. 

Ben swore and sprinted over, determined to finally get her under control. He grabbed at the leash right above where Finn’s hands were gripped. And then everyone was stationary; Finn, finally laying still on the pavement, Ben’s fingers latched onto the leash so hard that his fingers were white, and Wendy bucking uselessly against her collar.

Finally, success was in their grasp.

At least until the warthog turned around and started barreling back towards the two men. 

They both swore and dove away, trying to avoid Wendy’s filed-down, but still painful, tusks. And she dashed back and forth between them, as if daring them to try and come closer. Ben eyed the leash still trailing freely behind her.

But before he could lunge for it, a sharp whistle pierced the air.

All three of them turned to see a sweater-clad figure standing by an over-sized crate. She had something that looked like Fruit Leather in hand. The woman whistled again and Wendy started heading her way.

As Wendy approached, Rey tossed the snack into the crate, closing the door when the warthog followed in after the food. Rey patted the top of the crate and turned back to the two men.

“All done, boys. The runaway’s secure.”

Finn started to straighten his uniform. 

“Thanks, Rey. You’re a lifesaver.”

Her lips were twitching as she said, “I didn’t know you were both such stuntmen. You know, Luke was just talking about adding another animal show to the Pavilion lineup. You two and Wendy would probably make quite the splash.”

Ben exhaled in frustration.

“We would have handled it.”

“Is that what handling it looks like? It looked long and painful to me.” Her eyes danced with mirth.

Finn nodded wearily.

“It certainly felt that way.”

Ben glared at him, feeling betrayed for some reason. Finn’s eyes darted away from his. Ben focused back on Rey. 

“Can we talk privately for a minute?”

One side of her mouth lifted up and she shrugged.

“Sure. Looking forward to it. But I need to help situate Wendy first and then I’ll pass by your office?”

He huffed.

“Quickly then.”

He turned away from Rey’s overly bright smile and climbed back into his golf cart. As he sped away, he purposefully shoved all thoughts of Warthogs and their pretty British Keepers from his mind.

——

His back was killing him.

He already knew his entire backside was going to bruise into something nasty, but he also felt like he’d been run over by his own Zoo golf cart. And it was concerning.

So he’d just pulled part of his shirt up to feel for broken skin . And that was the exact time Rey chose to walk into his office without knocking. Because the universe just likes to screw him over.

She instantly froze, eyes wide and riveted to the part of his torso that was bare.

Ben pulled his shirt back down. 

“I’m checking if there are any scrapes.” He explained, his face heating up.

“Oh.” She paused for a second. “Do you need help checking?”

Ben stuttered for second, horrified just thinking of Rey’s hands on his skin. And how a part of him liked the idea. 

“No!” His voice cracked. He cleared his throat, giving himself a chance to collect himself. “No, I’m not actually that worried.”

She nodded and finally continued, “Well, Wendy’s back in her enclosure and digging for tubers, so all’s well again.”

He sighed and gestured for her to sit down across from him.

“Glad that’s taken care of.” 

When they were both seated, Ben moved on, running a hand through his hair.

“I know this is your day off, but I just really quickly wanted to talk about the whole taking-animals-out-of-the-enclosures thing.”

Rey’s perfect eyebrows arched up.

“You mean EXERCISING the animals?”

“Any activity that’s outside of the enclosures. We can’t continue with this.”

Her lips pursed.

“Ms. Holdo said to stop?”

“No, but I’m sure she will after I talk to her.”

“Right.” She drawled. “Well, you go talk to her if you think it’ll do something. But why are you talking to me about it?”

Ben leaned forward.

“It would help if we were on the same side of this.”

“Yeah, well, I’m not.”

“It needs to happen, especially after today’s situation. You know Hux will be all over this when he finds out.”

“When he finds out that you got outmaneuvered by a warthog?” She grinned. Then she continued. “He doesn’t get a say in this. And we’d likely have more problems if we didn’t take the warthogs out. They get destructive when they’re bored or frustrated. And anyways, the visitors always like it. Some of them plan their visits around the daily walks.”

“I’m sure they wouldn’t like it if they got bowled over by a warthog while trying to enter the Aquarium." Ben countered, "They can exercise in their enclosures. That's what enrichment's for. The warthogs are hardly one of our biggest draws anyway.”

She narrowed her eyes. 

“Don’t be mean to my pretty baby.”

Ben snorted at the word “pretty”. But Rey arched an eyebrow in reply.

“I’ll have you know that Wendy is wildly popular with the male warthogs.”

Ben had no idea what to do with that information. He shook head slightly, as if that could dislodge that last sentence out of his brain. He then leaned forward further, preparing to launch a new attempt to persuade her.

She cut him off before he even began. 

“I’m not changing my mind on this.”

Ben huffed and, again, before he could talk, Rey spoke again.

“Why are you so determined to make me agree with you anyways? I know you hate Hux, but he’d probably agree with you on this. He's a jerk like that. If you need someone to go to talk to Ms. Holdo with you, you can just drag him along. Why me?”

That made Ben pause. It was a good question. Why was he so determined to bring Rey on his side for this? Yes, she would be useful in going to Ms. Holdo (Their boss definitely had a soft spot for Rey). And Ben, begrudgingly, had a lot of respect for Rey. She was clever and hard-working, which was more than he could say about the majority of people he knew.

But, really, it would be easier to bring someone--anyone-- else along with him.

Before he could make sense of why it was so important that it had to be Rey, she continued.

“Do you even have time to go to Ms. Holdo with this? Haven’t you been heading the new Australia Region Project? On top of your normal work?”

Her gaze softened and her voice grew quieter, more intimate.

“You work harder than anyone else at the Zoo, Ben. At this rate you'll collapse. You need breaks like everyone else. And you deserve some rest.”

Ben gulped, feeling a bit overwhelmed by the sudden change in mood. Her eyes seemed to look right into him. Everything about the moment made his stomach flip. But then Rey says something that brings his mind back into order.

“The Zoo won’t fall apart if you take a day off. They’ll survive without you for a day.”

Ben really didn’t like the sound of that.

“It will if things like this keep happening.” He shot back. 

Rey sighed. Then she pushed her chair back and stood up, making as if she was about to leave.

“I wasn’t trying to insult you. I’m just trying to tell you it’s ok to take time for yourself too.”

She turned around to go, but Ben stood too, heading toward her.

“Well, I don’t need you to tell me how to do my job when you should be focusing on your own." Rey halted, her back suddenly tensing up. "Talk to me when you actually have your animals under control.”

Rey whipped back around, her fiery expression inspiring more fear than any rampaging wild animal.

“You have no right to talk to me like that.”

Ben stood his ground, “Did you not see what happened today?”

“Yes, I brought Wendy back under control, after a wild pig ran circles around you. All on my day off as well!”

“She wouldn’t even be out in the first place, if it wasn’t for this stupid idea of walking wild animals around like they were a domesticated dog!”

Rey jabbed her finger into Ben’s chest.

“You can’t bully your way through everything! You’re not the only one working here!”

Ben grabbed her hand before her finger poked at him again.

And suddenly he was all too aware that they were standing inches apart, her small warm hand within his. He could practically feel the heat coming off her body, they were so close. They both froze, Rey, with her eyes wide. And Ben could’ve sworn her eyes flickered to his lips for a millisecond.

The moment was interrupted by the sound of Poe’s voice booming from the hallway, greeting someone else. 

Rey and Ben jerked away from each other and his palms felt cold, the air-conditioned office air contrasting to her warm hands.

He cleared his throat in the awkward silence.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to be so demanding. Or to make it seem like you do a bad job. Your work's always actually really impressed me.”

Rey nodded while smoothing down her sweater.

“I think we should continue this conversation somewhere else.” She said.

Ben raised his eyebrows, probably failing to hide how disconcerted he was by this whole experience.

“Somewhere else? Where?”

“At Maggiano’s, tonight at 6:30.”

Ben’s brow furrowed.

“Maggiano’s? The Italian restaurant?”

“You don’t like Italian food?”

“No- I mean, I like Italian, I just don’t understand why we…” His voice trailed off, trying to figure out what was going on.

Rey met his eyes, her chin lifted in an almost challenging manner.

“You don’t want to?”

“I…” He thought about it some more. Him and Rey, just the two of them eating pasta and cheesecake and talking. He didn’t really know what was happening, but did he wasn’t really protesting against the idea.

“I guess that works.”

Rey grinned, the full power of her smile blinding.

“It’s a date.”

Ben felt his whole body freeze at that word. Did she really mean to use that word? 'Date'?

She stood a moment, watching him, eyebrows raised, a knowing smile on her face. Ben felt like an idiot when the only thing he could do was nod jerkily and stammer out an "Ok.”

Her smile then transformed as she bit her lip.

“See you at 6:30 then.”

She started to turn, but she paused and stepped quickly back to him. She rose up on her toes, and said in a low voice,

“And, yes, this is a real date. Try not to verbally attack me over dinner, and I have a feeling it will go well.”

And then her lips were pressed against his cheek and she was walking out of the room.

Ben stood alone in his office for a couple minutes, dumbfounded. His cheek tingled, his stomach was still flipping and he was fighting the urge to smile alone in his office like an lunatic.

That went very differently from what he expected. At the beginning of the day, he didn’t even know he wanted this. Dinner with Rey. But he had to actively stop himself from giving a fist pump like a thirteen year-old. 

As he turned back towards his desk, he knocked his head into the coat rack. Which brought the grand total of today's blows to the head up to three. But even that couldn’t sour his mood.

**Author's Note:**

> The title is a quote by Ron Carter, a jazz musician. I felt like, between Wendy the Warthog and an awkward, over-worked, clumsy Ben Solo, this was a fitting title.


End file.
